TAMPA, Fla. — Star power is a commodity in the NFL. Without it, you get the not-so-great slate of games — which included seven straight weeks away from home — that the Bucs were dealt last year. The league’s disregard was followed by a faint apology to Tampa Bay fans.
But when the 2020 schedule is released Thursday night, quarterback Tom Brady is expected to vault the Bucs into national television spots four or five times this season.
The Bucs’ games at Raymond James Stadium against the Chiefs, Packers and Saints — as well as road games against the Raiders, Giants and New Orleans — all are good candidates for prime time on Sunday, Monday and Thursday nights.
Hank Williams Jr., doesn’t need to sing his rhetorical anthem because yes, heavens yes, we will all be ready for some football.
Even so, view the schedule like the old Bucco Bruce logo would: with one eye closed. Chances are pretty good that the league has several contingencies due to possible interruptions related to the spread of the coronavirus.
It’s always fun to look at the schedule and imagine what those fall football weekends will look like. It will be fun to, you know, imagine making plans again.
But here are a few things to remember before we get to September:
———
— Reduction of games is possible
The plan currently is for every team to play 16 regular-season games with fans over 17 weeks, beginning the weekend after Labor Day.
International games in London and Mexico City have been moved back to the United States. The NFL can’t anticipate what conditions will be nationally, much less internationally, 18 weeks from now. That’s too bad for the Jacksonville Jaguars, who had two of their “home” games scheduled in London.
The league must be flexible in case conditions call for a reduction from 16 games to 14, or 12 or 10. How is this built into the schedule released Thursday? It may or may not be.
One way to do it is to not play any division games in the first month of the season. Also, make sure each team has home-and-away, home-and-away dates in the first four weeks. This would keep the competitive balance if early-season games are eliminated in favor of a shortened season.
Or the NFL could just push the whole schedule back four weeks and play it in its entirety. The league may just start with games in Week 5, then tack on the games from September at the end of the schedule in January.
Of course, that would mean pushing Super Bowl 55 in Tampa back.
———
— Prime-time Bucs in opener?
In a perfect world, there would be grand Week 1 celebrations to open new stadiums for the Rams and Chargers in Los Angeles, and the Raiders in Las Vegas. Construction delays due to the pandemic may make that risky.
But Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas would be the perfect venue for a Bucs at Raiders Monday Night Football game on opening weekend, the second of a double-header.
Jon Gruden’s former Bucs team against the Raiders, who shipped him to Tampa Bay in 2002. And here comes Brady, who ripped his heart out in the Tuck Rule Game during Gruden’s first stint with the Raiders.
As Gruden would say, let’s live in our hopes and not our fears about that one.
———
— What about the preseason?
It’s one thing to pretend like everything is fine and regular-season games will begin on time with fans. It’s another to suggest the preseason games in August will be all systems go as well.
But apparently the preseason schedule also will be rolled out Thursday, too. Those games are contracted between teams and not a league production. Preseason games also are easily eliminated and/or replaced by joint practices between teams.
Fans don’t really want to see them. Coaches would rather have controlled scrimmages to minimize the risk of injury.
The likelihood that there are preseason games in August is slim. Ultimately, except for the undrafted free agent who needs game tape, that’s a good thing.
———
— Tickets may be refunded or rolled into 2021
We’re a long way from knowing how many fans, if any, will be allowed to attend games. And barring a vaccine, they may do so at their own risk.
Some teams are drawing up plans to possibly limit crowds. The Dolphins, for example, may have “capacity” crowds of 15,000.
Several teams have announced they will give season-ticket holders a refund or credit toward tickets in a future season.
That could eventually happen with the Bucs. Ticketmaster is showing mostly upper-deck seats available to Bucs games next season. That’s good news. Fans have responded. But it’s also a little misleading. The team holds back premium seating for group sales and single-game ticket sales.
———
— About that ‘leaked’ Bucs schedule …
A schedule is making the rounds on social media that has the Bucs hosting the Falcons on Monday Night Football in Week 1. It seems unlikely that the NFL would want to schedule a division opponent out of the chute since they may have to postpone that game.
This schedule also shows a Thursday Night Football game at the Giants in Week 6 followed by a Sunday night game vs. the Chiefs the next week at Raymond James Stadium. There’s also a Monday game against the Packers and a Sunday night game vs. the Saints in the final five weeks.
No matter what, while the opponents are tough, with Brady under center the Bucs should get a smoother road to travel.
———
©2020 Tampa Bay Times (St. Petersburg, Fla.)
Visit the Tampa Bay Times (St. Petersburg, Fla.) at www.tampabay.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.